Oil Consumption

[MAC]

I've had my 07 955i Tiger for just under 2 months and so far I am loving the experience. It had 15,000 miles on the clock though the 12,000 mile service wasn't in the book the dealer I bought it from did a service as part of the deal.

The engine is a cracker with power everywhere with plenty of oomph especially on full throttle. However on a recent tour of Wales a friend noticed the odd puff of smoke when I was doing some full throttle overtakes.

Before the tour and with 1,500 miles in my ownership I checked the oil and was rather annoyed to find it just under the lower marker on the dip stick. My initial thought was that the dealer I got the bike from hadn't done the service they were supposed to do as part of the deal.

However on getting back from Wales after doing 600 ish miles I checked the oil again and found that once again it was low, this time just above the lower marker.

I contacted my local Triumph dealer and they said that the difference between the upper and lower markers on the dip stick is 500 ml of oil. Which means that in 2,000 miles I've used about 1,500 ml of oil, which is way more than any bike I've owned previously.

So can anyone confirm the difference between the upper and lower markers on the dip stick is 500 ml and has anyone got any suggestions as to what's the best course of action?

[Chris Canning]

Saw this last night and thought blimey this really is a black hole but here goes!!

I've had my 955 from new,it's 11 years old last may,it's had a mighty pasting over the years travelling Europe two up kit and yet I had never had it on the stop,always felt it taking something away from the bike when I've done that in the past,apart from the fact from 8000 upwards I don't see the point,I'll get of me soap box.

Bikes burning oil depends on so many things,mine burns oil in a hot climate,on the trip to Mugello the other week around 2600 miles I went with the oil up to the top of the dipstick,put 250ml in it when we got there and it was just off the bottom of the dipstick when we got home it took 100ml to show on the dipstick,I did it out of curiosity as I'll drop the oil out before I use it again anyway.I'd say anything between 300/500ml will take you from top to bottom.

You say you haven't had other bikes burn oil before,so I assume you have only owned Japanese,I've always found anything European burns oil over a distance.

While I would say the amount of oil it is using isn't all that bad,the smoke you can see isn't ideal,and I'd suggest try doing a 1000 miles without having the bike on the stop and see what how it goes.

Oh and I've always run mine on Shell Ultra

Like the vintage Givi topbox  :D

[MAC]

Hi Chris

I just want to point out that there is a big difference between using full throttle and red lining the bike. You can redline a bike with very little throttle or you can use full throttle and be nowhere near the rev limit.

In my case its about getting on the power fully and quickly to get maximum grunt for overtakes or out of corners. The Tiger can really be hustled, especially on tight twisty B roads.

Your right about my previous bikes, this is the first one that hasn't been Japanese and the most I've had to do in the past was an occasional top up just before the 4,000 mile service was due.

I may commute on it for a week or so and monitor the oil usage to try and get a better idea of what its using. I'd just prefer to have a site glass as it would make keeping an eye on it easier.

Its good to know that the difference between top and bottom on the marker is only 500 ml as I was filling up from an almost empty 4 ltr bottle and that made it a bit harder to estimate exactly how much I'd put in to top up.

[Chris Canning]

On here somewhere is a thread about checking oil,even that isn't an exact science as their were variations,what I have found if you do an oil change and put the correct amount in,mine doesn't even show on the dipstick!!!

Having said that my XT660 is exactly the same.

[MAC]

The worst I ever had was a Honda Vigor, the filler and dip stick were in the top of the frame and you had to follow a very specific process to get an accurate oil level measurement.

I've read the one on here done the 10 minute thing but also like to check when cold, after allowing as much oil as possible to drop in to the sump.

[jphish]

Mac - lots of experience in this group (author here excepted) and I have  generally found the advice accurate & relevant. You all must have different dip sticks than my USA 06' Girly. The diff between top & bottom mark is only about 1/2 inch (12-13mm) & no where near a half a Qt on mine. (500ml for the metric folks - we're not as advanced over here) More like 200-300 ml. (about 8-10 oz) Also, mine is FULL UP on dipstick at 3.25 L / Qts - NOT 4 - as specified by manual. The diff between cold check and 10 min wait, hot check, is another anomoly. There still seems to be 3-4 oz (75-100 ml) hiding up there, based on letting it drain over night and checking again. I dont know if exported 06 tiggers had different specs on oil capacity - but this has been my experience after 4 oil changes.

[mwrmoore]

mine uses about the same, depending on what type of raods it has been used on, bimbling about not so much, higher revs and long time in the saddle, more, probably about 250ml/500miles

so i think it really varies from bike to bike to be honest

[TigerT]

My 03 has always used oil, particularly when ridden hard and on motorway trips. My wife following on her suzuki always notices an puff of black smoke as I gas it to overtake. No idea what all this means, but have to keep levels topped up.

[TigerT]

My 03 has always used oil, particularly when ridden hard and on motorway trips. My wife following on her suzuki always notices an puff of black smoke as I gas it to overtake. No idea what all this means, but have to keep levels topped up.

[iansoady]

Black smoke is generally rich mixture (which you would expect when opening the throttle suddenly). Oil smoke usually blue.

[delecti]

Hi,
In my recent rebuild, the head between valves and lapping up to the exaust valves held quite a bit of oil and in the cam chain starter cases and the oil cooler hold about 500mls of oil.

I think that the amount the bike is using is too much, personally.

Mark
PS there are fotos of my rebuild and the one with the head back in place shows the space between the valves.